Grace Personified
by Pacingincircles
Summary: Fitz and Liv are happily married. Post presidency. He's a professor, she's still working at OPA. The kids are happy, Mellie's out of the picture. They both have gotten the dream, but can happily ever after get even happier?
1. Mommy

**Just another night's worth of procrastination. Enjoy!**

* * *

"What are you doing home so early?" Fitz asks as he closes the front door behind himself, dropping his briefcase and making his way over to Olivia. She's sitting on the couch wrapped up in a blanket, a glass of ginger ale on the coffee table in front of her next to an empty bowl of chicken noodle soup.

"I think I may have picked up a bug from that school field trip with Teddy or something," she replies with a small pout as she picks up the ginger ale and takes a sip. "I'm sure it's just a forty eight hour thing and I'll be back to dismantling crises in no time."

He gives her a small smile and leans in to kiss her forehead. "You do feel a little warm. Can I get you anything?"

She hands him the empty bowl of soup, "Maybe just a refill?" And he nods in agreement and turns toward the direction of the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with a fresh bowl of soup.

"Do you need anything else?" He asks as he hands her the bowl, watching as she takes a small bite, scrunching up her face when she realizes how hot it actually is. He chuckles and kisses her temple again.

"I could use a proper hello actually," she says with a devilish grin, placing the soup on the table again. He kneels down, pressing one his knees on the couch—effectively straddling her. And he slowly leans forward, keeping eye contact with her the entire time, and right as his lips were to contact hers, he pulls back and smiles. "If you're sick maybe I should stay away. It's not very becoming of a former president to catch the flu, even if it is from his beautiful wife."

She lets his words sink in for a few seconds before grabbing his tie and pulling him back down to her—capturing his lips with her own. She pulls back after a few seconds—still tightly grasping his tie, holding him in place—and gives him a cheeky smile. "If I have to suffer through this, you do too, mister. Presidency be damned."

"Well," he says in a drawn out fashion, "I guess being sick isn't so bad if we do it together. And I like doing this," he leans in and kisses her again, baiting her to open her mouth with his tongue after a few seconds. He finally pulls back, not overlooking the matching smiles on their faces. "I like doing that too much to let anything stand in my way anymore." And he drops his weight and pins her to the couch, stifling her surprised laughter with another all-consuming kiss. He eventually flips them over, holding her close in his arms, never breaking the kiss—and they only do pulls away when they hear familiar giggles and the creaking of steps.

They both look over to the teenage girl, playfully covering her little bother's eyes with her hands as they stand on the outskirts of the living room together. Teddy tries to wrangle himself free, but Karen is too agile and familiar with his usual squirming habits. "Daddy stop kissing mom! I wanna be able to see again!" The little boy yells through another round of giggles.

Karen pulls her hands away from Teddy's face and gives Olivia and Fitz a disapproving look. "Why can't this be a normal family where I'm the one caught making out on the couch with my boyfriend by you two?"

Teddy looks up at Karen, innocently pointing out, "You don't even have a boyfriend anymore, Karen!"

She gives her brother a faux angry glare. "That is beside the point, Theodore."

Fitz and Olivia both laugh—Liv quickly looking over at Teddy and whispering, "You better run, little man; you just got the full name." And the little boy's eyes grow wide for a few seconds before he runs over and launches himself on top of his father and stepmother. Fitz picks up the little boy and throws him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry as he parades in circles around the living room, Teddy laughing and shrieking the entire time. Karen moves to sit on the couch next to Olivia and takes a sip of her ginger ale.

"You probably shouldn't have done that, Karen. I think I'm getting sick," Olivia points out as Karen returns the now half empty glass to the table.

"Eh, that's ok. Any excuse not to have to go to school is a welcomed one."

Olivia turns her body on the couch to look at Karen and gives her a questioning look, watching as the girl's face suddenly falls, and tears well up in her eyes. Olivia quickly turns to Fitz—who's still parading around with Teddy—and gives him a serious look. "Boys out, it's girl time."

Fitz stops moving and looks over at the way Karen's face is buried into Olivia's shoulder, giving her a worried look. She rubs a hand up and down Karen's back and shoos Fitz away with a single nod of the head.

He reluctantly turns to leave, Teddy still hanging securely over his shoulder. "Homework time Ted, c'mon." And they walk into the kitchen, Teddy groaning at the mention of homework.

"Karen, what happened?" Olivia coaxes when she sees that the boys are finally gone.

Karen keeps her head on Olivia's shoulder for a few more minutes, continuing to cry. She finally picks her head up and looks at Olivia, a few tears still running down her cheeks. "Alex only pretended to like me because of dad."

Olivia brushes the girl's hair out of her face, giving her a sympathetic smile. "What do you mean?"

"He just wanted to say that he hooked up with the president's kid. That's why he was so nice to me. It was all a joke to him—I'm a joke now."

"Karen Grant, you listen to me. You are not a joke. You're sweet, and intelligent, and funny, and beautiful. I know you really liked him, but you can't let Alex's immaturity affect you. He missed out on a spectacular girl, honey; and that's his own doing. He'll see it eventually, and by the time he does, you'll have moved on and hopefully found someone who loves you for you. Someone who loves absolutely everything about you—including the fact that you lived at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue for eight years."

"I should have known. But he just—I just—I thought he was different."

"I know you did, baby girl. But you live and learn, that's what life is all about—learning from your mistakes. And Alex definitely falls into that category now," Olivia says with a small smile, running her fingers through Karen's long brown hair.

"I should have listened to dad. He knew."

"He didn't know, Kare. He's going to feel the way he felt about Alex about every single guy you bring home. And until a guy proves himself, your father won't like him. You're his only baby girl and he doesn't want to see you all grown up just yet."

She gives Olivia a smile. "He wants me to be five years old and still need him to scare away the monster from under my bed."

Olivia nods with a laugh, "That's exactly what he wants. But you need to spread your wings and fly a little on your own to find out that nest will always be your safe place."

Karen smiles at her and rests her head back against Olivia's shoulder. "I know Teddy's the only one who calls you mom sometimes, but Gerry and I—you're the closest thing we have to a mom, or at least a real mom. So maybe sometimes—could I maybe call you that too?"

Olivia closes her eyes, trying to fight the tears from escaping. "You want to call me mom?" she asks after a few seconds, her voice half cracking at the end.

"I mean, if that's ok. We all live with you, well not Gerry anymore—but when he talks about home, he means here and this is where he comes for breaks and holidays—, and you treat us more like sons and a daughter than our mom ever did. So yeah, you're my mom—and I think I'd like to call you that."

Olivia leans down and kisses Karen's forehead, the tears finally starting to roll down her cheeks. "I'd really like that, Kare. I love you and your brothers so much, I don't think it'd be possible to love you guys anymore."

"I love you too, _mom_. I'm so happy you're here forever now."

Olivia chuckles through her tears. "I'm not going anywhere anymore, I promise."

"Good, cause it's not just dad who would be lost without you anymore. Gerry, Teddy, and I would be too."

"You need to stop saying all of these heartwarming things that are making me cry," Olivia says with a wide smile as she presses another kiss to Karen's temple.

"Oh you mean like this? Mom, mom, mom, mom, _mom_!"

"Stop or you're grounded for a week!" Olivia says, not able to stifle a small laugh.

"Mom! I _love_ you, _mom_!"

"I'm sick, you have to be nice to me."

"You're sick because you went on Teddy's fieldtrip—like a true _mom_ would."

"You're a brat Karen Melody Grant. Do you know that?"

"_Mother_-daughter bickering is my new favorite thing, _mom_."

"Go to your room. You're grounded!"

Karen wraps her arms around Olivia's neck, giving her a tight hug. "I will go up to my room, but I'm definitely not grounded, and I still love you _mom_," Karen says as she stands up and walks towards the spiral staircase. She gets halfway up the stairs before she turns back and smiles at Olivia, "Thanks for the talk."

Olivia smiles at her, wiping away the last stray tear from her cheek with the sleeve of her sweater. "Anytime baby girl. And for the record, I love being called your mom."

Karen smiles and nods her head slightly as she continues her way up the stairs. Olivia picks up her glass and soup bowl and brings them into the kitchen, smiling as she sees Fitz and Teddy working on writing his five sentence short story. She places her dishes in the sink and walks over behind Teddy, looking over his shoulder as she rests a hand on Fitz's shoulder. "And how are two of my three favorite Grant boys doing?"

Teddy quickly jerks his head up and flips over his paper before he turns to look back at her. "You can't look yet. It's not finished!"

She throws her hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. But can I read it when it's all finished?"

"Duh! It's for you anyway, momma." And he looks down for a few seconds before looking back up at her with red cheeks. "I wasn't supposed to say that," and he looks over to Fitz, "right daddy?"

Fitz shrugs his shoulders, "I think it's okay that you said that. It'll keep her guessing now." And he winks at Teddy before looking up to Liv and giving her a small smile. "Is everything okay with Karen?"

"Yep, crisis averted and daughter comforted," she says with a laugh. "Just don't go mentioning Alex around her anymore."

"Noted." And he stands and wraps her in a hug as Teddy kneels on his chair facing them.

"Momma, can we have cheesy chicken for dinner tonight?" Teddy asks as Olivia walks over to him and lifts him onto her hip.

"Cheesy chicken is a definite possibility, but I think we should add a nice large side of broccoli to it," Olivia says with a smile as she adjusts Teddy on her hip and he throws up his hands in victory. "You're getting so big buddy. How old are you again? Like thirty?"

He laughs. "I'm six and one quarter! Duh."

"Do you know how old I am?" She asks with a smile as she puts him back down.

"I'm not supposed to ask cause you don't ask old people how old they are cause you're usually wrong and you hurt their feelings," Teddy says all in one breath before climbing back up onto his chair.

Both Fitz and Olivia laugh, nodding in agreement. And Fitz gives Olivia another kiss before sitting back down at the kitchen table to help Teddy finish his story. "Good man."

Teddy turns back around to look at Olivia. "So, cheesy chicken night?"

She nods in confirmation. "Cheesy chicken night." And she walks into the kitchen and opens the refrigerator to start getting everything out and ready.

"Hey Livvie, I'll make dinner if you want to go take a quick nap," Fitz offers after he whispers a few words for the story in Teddy's ear.

"Why do you need a nap?" Teddy asks Olivia as he turns around once again.

"She got sick on your fieldtrip a few days ago, bud."

"But no one's sick. Why are you sick?"

She shrugs her shoulders as she puts a glass pan onto the counter. "Maybe you all just have a better immune system than me."

"Maybe it's cause I don't kiss people all the time," Teddy says as he turns back around and faces the table, continuing his work.

Olivia laughs and Fitz turns back to look at her. "Nope, I definitely don't think that's the problem here. The kissing should always continue."

Olivia rounds the kitchen island and presses a kiss to the tops of Teddy's and Fitz's heads, impressed by their matching curls. "Ok, well on that note, I'm going upstairs. I laid everything out, Fitz. Put the oven on three seventy five and bake the chicken for thirty minutes, and then add the extra cheese to the top and put it in for five more minutes."

"I've got it under control. Go take your nap," he says with a smile.

"Okay, I'm going, I'm going," she says as she exits the kitchen and walks up the stairs.

She's awoken about an hour later by Teddy, his face lying in close proximity to her own on the pillow. She moves in and playfully kisses his nose before reaching around and tickling his small body. He shrieks and laughs and kicks until she finally stops, noticing that he's out of breath.

"Is dinner ready?" She asks as he settles into her lap, wrapping his arms around her neck.

He nods and tightens his hold around her, laughing as he wraps his legs around her waist when she stands, still clinging to her small frame. They walk into Karen's room and find her on the computer skyping Gerry from college. Teddy's face lights up and he jumps into Karen's lap so he can be closer to the computer and see his brother better.

Karen wraps her arms around Teddy and presses a kiss to the top of his head. "Hey Ted, Gerry has a surprise for you."

The little boy's face lights up. "What is it? What is it!"

"Do you really want to know?" Gerry asks, laughing as Teddy enthusiastically nods his head. "Well, it has to do with me and with you and with dad and Liv and Karen. And it especially has to do with our house…"

Teddy looks around the room with a wide smile before looking back at the computer. "You're coming home!" He almost shouts, his excitement not able to be contained in his little body.

Gerry nods in confirmation and laughs as he chucks a pillow across his dorm at his roommate who had made a witty comment. Fitz walks into the room a few seconds later, an apron tied around his waist. Olivia and Karen both laugh at him and Teddy jumps off of Karen's lap and into Fitz's arms.

"Daddy! Daddy! Guess what! Gerry's coming home tomorrow! He's gonna be here tomorrow!"

Fitz smiles at his youngest son, "I know bud. Isn't that great?" And he watches as Teddy once again enthusiastically nods his head. "Ok, why don't you say goodbye to Gerry for tonight and go wash your hands for dinner," Fitz says as he places Teddy back to the ground.

"Cheesy chicken is ready?" Teddy asks excitedly and Fitz nods.

"Bye Gerry! See you tomorrow! I love you!" And he runs out of the room and into his bathroom before he can hear Gerry return the message.

"You're having cheesy chicken without me? That's been my favorite since the first time Liv made it on the trail."

Olivia smiles. "I'll save you a nice big plate for when you get home."

"Thanks, Ma. Ok well if dinner's ready then I guess I should let you guys go. I'll probably be home in time tomorrow to surprise the little guy and pick him up from school."

"That sounds great, Gerry. I'm glad you're coming home," Fitz says as he makes his way over to Olivia and wraps his arm around her shoulders, drawing her closer to himself.

"Wait, are you wearing an apron dad? What the hell has Liv done to you these last two years?"

Olivia laughs, "It's not me. It's all your father and his post presidency midlife crisis."

Fitz laughs and kisses Olivia's temple. "I most certainly do not think of my life as a crisis thank you very much. And for your information, your brother asked me to put it on and since I'm a man of the people, I obliged."

Karen smiles, "Our old man is getting soft in his old age."

"I'm not going to stand around and listen to my good name be tarnished," Fitz says with mock seriousness. "I'll see you tomorrow, son. Have a good night and drive safely."

"Alright everyone, see you tomorrow! Oh and hey Kare, you can text me about you-know-what if you want."

Fitz takes a step forward and looks back at Gerry. "Oh no no, there's none of that. What are you two talking about?"

"Don't worry about it dad," Gerry says with a laugh before he ends the call and the screen goes blank.

Fitz looks over to Karen as she stands and starts to exit the room. "What did he mean, Karen?"

She smiles and raises her eyebrows. "Don't worry about it."

"I used to command the best military in the history of the world. I'm sure someone somewhere owes me a favor."

"Are you threatening me with military action if I don't tell you what we were talking about?"

Fitz nods as he starts placing food onto the table. "That is exactly what I'm doing."

Karen moves and places her hands over Teddy's ears, "We were referring to s-e-x," she says, adding exaggeration to each letter.

His face falls. "Wha—what?"

She laughs and walks over to him, "I'm just kidding."

"Don't you ever scare me like that. That is a situation in which I would most certainly call in that favor."

"You would kill a random guy if I told you that I slept with him?" Karen asks as she carries two glasses of water to the table for herself and Teddy.

"Oh no, I would personally show up and kill him. And then I would have my buddies force him to enlist to get him the hell away from you."

"What your father means is, that he loves you and wants you to be safe in _everything_ you do, with _everyone_ you do it with, _every time _you do it. But you can always talk to us. And he also doesn't want or need any details. Ever." Olivia says with a smile as they all sit down for dinner.

"What does Karen do that's not safe?" Teddy asks innocently as he licks the cheese off of his fingers.

Olivia smiles at him as she helps him cut up his chicken. "Sometimes Karen will drive her car without a seatbelt or won't use safety scissors."

Teddy smiles brightly at Karen. "I always use my safe scissors!" And he stabs a piece of chicken with his fork and brings it to his mouth, giving Fitz a thumbs up.

The conversation lulls out for a few moments until Olivia asks about each child's day. Karen skims over her day, hitting the high points and informing her parents that she got an A on her research paper; but Teddy relays every part of his day, from what color his behavior stick stayed on all day to what food he had for lunch and what games he played at recess.

They finish dinner and Fitz does all of the dishes and cleans up the kitchen as Olivia supervises Teddy's bath and helps him get ready for bed. Teddy does his usual nighttime ritual—saying goodnight to each member of the family and reading a book to Olivia to help improve his reading skills. He finishes the book, but much to her surprise he jumps up out of bed and runs downstairs to his backpack by the front door, extracting the paper he had written his short story on. He runs back upstairs and crawls into bed, settling in against Olivia's chest as he starts to read.

_My Special Person by Teddy Grant  
I got a new mom last year.  
She is very nice and pretty.  
She makes our whole family happy.  
She loves me and I love her.  
I am very happy that she is my momma now._

Teddy puts the paper down on the bed and looks up at her with a weary smile, awaiting her response. Olivia smiles down at him after a few seconds with a few tears in her eyes. She presses a kiss to Teddy's forehead, "That was beautiful, buddy. Thank you."

"Did you like it?"

She shakes her head no and smiles. "I _loved_ it. And I love you Teddy bear." And she moves off of the bed and pulls the American flag blanket up over the little boy.

She sits back down on the edge of the bed and kisses his forehead again, reaching over to turn on the night light next to his bed.

"Thank you for being my momma."

She brushes the few curls from around his forehead. "Thank you for making me a momma."

He smiles. "You're welcome." And he claps to turn off his light, closing his eyes once it turns off.

She walks out of the room and finds Karen sitting on the ground in the hallway outside of Teddy's door, smiling up at Olivia when she finally notices her presence. "I'm glad Teddy's going to grow up with you around. Having nannies all the time really sucked."

Olivia helps Karen up to her feet and gives her a hug. "Now don't get me wrong, I love it, I really do—but what's with all the mom stuff today?" Olivia asks as they walk down the hall together, arm in arm.

Karen shrugs her shoulders as she moves to sit on her bed. "I don't know. It's just starting to feel like we're one of those normal families, like we're a real family—because of you."

Olivia smiles at her, "I'm glad you feel that way Kare." And she takes a seat on the bed next to Karen. "And about earlier with Gerry, I understand that your father and I and your mother are probably the last three you would bring any problems to, but I just want you to know that you can always come to us with anything. We're always here for you, and nothing is too large or too trivial. Okay?"

Karen nods her head slightly in understanding, and after a few seconds she finally whispers out, "It's just, she hasn't called in almost a month. And when she did, all she wanted to say was that her campaign had a stop up here and she wanted me to go to some tea with her. And I know it's just for the pictures and the press. She doesn't care about me, and she doesn't care about Gerry or Teddy."

"Kare, your mother cares about all three of you and she loves each of you. She just doesn't really know how to show it sometimes, and sometimes she doesn't really get her priorities straight."

"I know. But she just really sucks sometimes. Sometimes I like to imagine that you were always my mom, and when I was little you would have princess tea with me and play with my hair and come to my dance recitals. I wish you were her—and I've wished that since I was like eight and you were on the campaign with dad. Everything was fun back then."

Olivia smiles wistfully. "Well, we're here now. And if you ever want to have princess tea or want me to play with your hair or want to throw an impromptu dance recital in the living room, I'm right here."

Karen smiles. "Thanks."

"And by the way, if you really don't want to go to the tea with your mom then I don't blame you. But I think you should go, I don't want you living with any regrets later in life—especially when it comes to your relationship with your mother."

"I'll think about it," Karen says with a small smile as she crawls across her bed to answer her ringing phone.

Olivia gets up and walks to the door, "Don't stay up too late, please. You've got school in the morning."

Karen nods as she brings the phone up to her ear and answers the call. But she quickly runs over to the door and puts the phone down by her side, hugging Olivia with her free arm before returning to her bed and phone call.

A sudden unexplained wave of nausea runs through Liv's body, and she runs into the master bathroom, barely making it to the toilet. She sits there on her knees for a few minutes, taking deep breaths, trying to settle her stomach; but as soon as she stands, another wave hits her, and she's back hunched over the toilet.

She comes out of the bathroom a while later, finally confident that she's done throwing up, and she walks into Fitz's office—standing at the door, watching him focus on grading papers.

He eventually finishes the one he's working on and looks up at her, instantly noticing the expression on her face. "What are you smiling about?"

She walks into the room further and leans back against his desk, running her fingers through his hair. "So I take it you're feeling a little better?"

She nods with a smile. "I feel much, much, much better. Perfect even."

"And are you going to tell me why?" He asks as he tosses his red pen onto the desk and pulls her into his lap.

"I'll give you a hint," she says seductively as she leans in and brings her lips to his.

"Teddy isn't sick," she says with a small smile once she's pulled away. "And neither are Karen or you. Or apparently anyone in Teddy's class for that matter."

"Okay?" he says as he leans in to steal another kiss.

"I'm the only one who's sick…" she says leaving it opened for him to catch on, but he still doesn't.

"For a Rhode's scholar, a Harvard educated lawyer, a man with his PhD, and a former leader of the free world, sometimes you're such a typical oblivious man," she says with a laugh as she pecks his lips. She brings both of her hands up to cup his cheeks and looks him in the eye, "I don't have the flu. Teddy's class didn't get me sick—you got me sick. I'm pregnant."

His face lights up and wide smile spreads across it. "Really?"

She nods. "Really." And she removes a hand from his cheek to bring one of his hands up to her flat abdomen, snaking it under her shirt and pressing it against her warm skin. "There's a baby in there. We're having a baby."

He smiles. "When did you find out?"

"About five minutes ago. I was sprawled out across the bathroom floor and saw a few stray pills behind the vanity, and it got me thinking, so I took a test. And here we are."

He leans in and captures her lips with his own, pulling her closer to himself with one arm as he leaves his other hand pressed up against her abdomen. They finally break apart, and he looks up at her—joy and surprise and elation all playing across his facial features, but the only emotion she sees in his eyes is love.

"We're having a baby," he says slowly after a few seconds, trying to let the realization sink it.

"We're having a baby," she repeats with a wide smile.

"I love you so much, Livvie."

"I love you too, so very much."

And the both look back down at her stomach, both unconsciously smiling, both excited beyond their wildest dreams.

"Hi baby, it's _Mommy_."

* * *

**Well?**


	2. Daddy

**Well, this was originally going to be a one shot, but by popular demand I'm back with more. I mean who am I kidding? I just can't seem to stay away. I'm thinking about a four or five shot for this one, so be on the lookout for more. **

* * *

"You're gonna be there tonight, right?" Teddy asks, shoveling a rather large spoonful of cereal into his mouth as Olivia hurriedly walks past him and into the kitchen—dropping a quick kiss on top of his short brown curls.

"I wouldn't miss your show for the world, bud," she replies with a comforting smile as she tightens the lid on her thermos of coffee and takes a small sip of the dark brown liquid.

Fitz comes waltzing into the kitchen with Karen on his heels, the teenage girl still begging for a curfew extension so she can go out with friends after Teddy's play. Karen sits at the table next to Teddy with her own bowl of cereal and Fitz continues over to Olivia—leaning in to give her a small peck on the lips, but he quickly pulls back and gives her a disapproving look when he tastes the coffee on her.

She gives him a small smile and leans in to kiss him again, whispering against his lips, "It's decaf, I swear."

Karen looks over to her parents in the kitchen and once she swallows the food in her mouth, she calls out, "Can you two focus on something other than each other for like two seconds?"

Olivia breaks free from Fitz's embrace and walks over to where the two kids are sitting, leaning against the table. "You've got my full and undivided attention. Now what's the matter?"

"Can you please explain to dad that me staying out like twenty minutes past curfew isn't that big of a deal and that I'm almost eighteen, not eight?"

Olivia gives her stepdaughter a sympathetic look and then turns back to look at Fitz who's conveniently not meeting her gaze. She rolls her eyes at him and slowly turns back around, "I don't see why—what'd you say? Twenty minutes?—I don't see why that should pose a problem. But I have this distinct feeling that twenty minutes is not what you asked your father for, now is it?"

Karen slowly shakes her head and meets Fitz's gaze as he walks over to the table to deliver breakfast to Olivia. Olivia sits in the chair next to where she was leaning and smiles as Fitz kisses her cheek and looks at Karen, "Don't let her fool you Livvie, she asked for almost two hours so I told her twelve thirty."

"That's not fair! Gerry stays out all night and I can't even stay out past midnight."

Teddy looks up from his list of spelling words and turns to look over at Karen. "And he gots in big trouble for that!"

Olivia nods with a laugh, "That he did, Teddy bear. And I think twelve thirty is pretty reasonable. You're still in high school and nothing good happens out after midnight, baby."

"I'm not a baby!" Karen somewhat screams as she stands and pushes her chair back from the kitchen table.

Fitz looks over at her and gives her a menacing look. "Don't you dare raise your voice at anyone in this house, Karen. And if you keep pushing it, I'm just going to say no to you going out altogether."

She looks over at Olivia and gives her an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry." And she grabs her empty bowl and puts it in the sink as she looks up at her father, "Fine."

He hands her a brown paper bag and kisses the top of her head, "Have a good day at school. I love you," he says in a faux happy voice with a wink and a wide smile.

Karen rolls her eyes and accepts the bag, kissing his cheek before walking back to the table. She gathers her few books and purse and gives Olivia a small hug and ruffles Teddy's hair as she walks out of the dining room toward the front door.

Teddy looks over at Olivia, "She's always so grumpy."

Olivia laughs and picks up the paper in front of Teddy, "Are you ready?" He nods with a mouth full of cereal and starts spelling out each word that she gives him.

"Alright Teddy, it looks like you've got them all," Olivia says with a smile once she's finished running through the list. She checks her watch, not realizing how late it had gotten. "Go grab your backpack, we need to head out." And she carries their dishes over to the sink, smiling as Fitz wraps his arms around her from behind—resting his hands against her flat abdomen.

She turns in his arms and wraps her own arms around his neck, smiling against his lips as he leans in to kiss her. She eventually pulls away from him and gives him a coy smile. "Maybe you should have let her stay out all night. We could have had a little fun."

"What kind of fun are we talking? Just regular fun or sexy fun? Because it isn't too late for me to text her."

She laughs leans in to kiss him again. "You'll just have to wait and see."

"You're such a tease, Olivia Pope."

"Hey, that's Olivia Pope-Grant to you, mister."

"This Grant guy is a very lucky man, Ms. Pope. I hope he treats you right."

She leans in and pecks his lips one last time, "He does indeed. And for the record, I see him getting pretty lucky tonight."

Teddy walks back into the kitchen with his buzz light year backpack slung over his shoulder, holding his hands out waiting for his lunch. Fitz hands him the Toy Story themed lunch box and straightens the collar on his uniform shirt. "You have a good day at school today, Abe Lincoln. I'll see you tonight at the play."

He bends down and gives Teddy a hug goodbye. "Don't be late, Daddy. It wouldn't be very presidential." And the little boy runs over to the front door, waiting for Olivia.

Fitz stands back up and hands Olivia a brown paper bag with a fresh thermos of coffee. "I cannot believe the way these children speak to me. No respect," he says with a laugh and disapproving nod as he moves in to kiss her goodbye.

"Life is so tough for you, Mr. President," she says playfully as she cups his cheek before turning to walk over to Teddy.

He quickly grabs her arm and pulls her back to himself. "All I'm saying is, this baby better learn some manners."

She smiles. "Well that can be your job. You can teach him or her your presidential etiquette." And she leans in to straighten his tie and kiss him one last time, breaking away as Teddy calls out for her from the front door. "I'll see you tonight."

* * *

"She'll be here Ted, she's probably just running a little late," Karen says as she straightens the top hat on her little brother's head, trying to calm his nerves.

"She should be here. All the other moms are here," Teddy says in a somewhat dejected voice, his spirits clearly falling with each passing minute Olivia doesn't walk backstage.

Karen sits him down on a stool in front of one of the many mirrors and keels down to be at eye level with him. "Did mom promise that she'd be here?"

He nods but doesn't meet her gaze.

"Then she'll be here," Karen says with a small smile as she playfully pinches his side. "I'm gonna go sit down now. You'll be great Teddy bear! I'll see you after." And she gives him a quick hug before walking back to the front of the school auditorium to find her seat.

Teddy stays seated on the stool, not really focused on any of the commotion going on around back stage. Moms and teachers are running around searching for lost costume accessories and rehearsing lines with their kids for last minute memorizations, but Teddy just sits there quietly to himself staring at his feet.

His teacher calls out a five minute warning, and he's about to go run and hide in one of the bathrooms or another secluded room when he hears a familiar voice behind him. "Hey honest Abe, can I try on that cool hat?"

He spins around with a wide smile on his face and walks into Olivia's open arms, locking his own arms securely around her neck. He pulls away and she straightens out his hat and thin black tie. "Are you ready?"

He nods in affirmation before adding a faint, "I thought you weren't gonna come."

She crouches back down and looks him in the eye. "Did I promise you that I'd be here?" And he nods.

"Do I usually ever break my promises when it comes to you or Karen or Gerry?"

He nods again with a smile and he giggles as she wraps him in her arms and picks him up and spins him around. She kisses his forehead and puts him back on his feet, brushing her hand over the small wrinkles on his jacket.

"I love you buddy. Break a leg, and I know you're going to be the second best Abe Lincoln out there."

Teddy looks up at her with a smile and cocks his head. "Who's the first best?"

She laughs and pats his hat, "The original of course. But you're going to be a very close second, I can tell."

He smiles and looks over to his teacher as she calls his name, noticing that all of the other moms have started to go and take their seats.

Olivia smiles at him, "I'm going to go sit down now, and if you can spot us in the crowd, I think you'll really enjoy the surprise we have for you."

His face lights up at the mention of a surprise and he gives her another small hug before running over to join his classmates.

Olivia makes her way over to their seats and sits down in between Fitz and Karen, leaning forward a few inches to look at Gerry. "He has no idea that you're here," she says to him with a smile.

"Good, I can't wait to see his face when he sees me," Gerry says with a small laugh.

Fitz stretches his arm around Olivia's shoulders and pulls her close to himself. "Maybe it'll look something like mind did," he says with a laugh of his own.

Karen looks over at Gerry, "Yeah, how'd you not tell any of us that you were coming?"

"If you would have asked I would have told you. Liv was the only one to ask, so she's the only one who knew," he says smiling over at Olivia.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Fitz says as he playfully pushes Gerry's shoulder with a laugh.

Olivia snuggles her head onto Fitz's shoulder as the lights finally dim and the kids come processing out on stage. They can instantly spot Teddy in the darkness because of his top hat and Fitz laughs as he notices its crooked posture.

"They should have let him be me, I never wore a silly hat while in office," he whispers to Olivia.

"This play isn't about the presidents of your era, Fitzgerald. And plus, it'd be a sin to cover all that nice hair with a hat."

"Oh so you like my hair?" He asks with a cheeky smile that doesn't go unnoticed by Olivia in the darkness.

"Nah, not really," she replies with a laugh as both of them are shushed by Karen.

They intently watch the remainder of the show, impressed by the ability of Teddy's first grade class and all of the kids in general. Teddy's class eventually finishes their portion of the play and exits the stage, making way for the older classes to perform. The play finally ends with all of the classes singing the national anthem and they all take a bow as they receive a standing ovation.

Olivia goes back stage to help Teddy gather his belongings and get changed, and Fitz stands with Gerry and Karen by the front of the stage, talking to other parents as they wait.

Teddy and Olivia emerge from backstage a few minutes later, and the second Teddy lays eyes on Gerry he takes off running toward him, launching himself into his brother's arms with an excited squeal.

"Gerry's home! Gerry's home! Gerry's home! This is the best day ever," Teddy declares as they walk out toward the parking lot together, a wide smile on each family member's face.

Fitz lifts Teddy's backpack from Olivia's shoulder as they approach their cars, and after he tosses it into the trunk he looks over at Teddy, "I know it's getting late but how'd you like to stop for ice cream on the way home?"

Teddy's face lights up once again and he excitedly nods, "This really is the best day ever! Can I drive with Gerry?"

Fitz hesitates for a moment, knowing that his excitement will be a distraction and temptation—but he relents after considering the short length of the drive and the fact that he'll be close behind. "Sure," he says with a smile. "Be careful."

The boys get into Gerry's car and Karen turns toward he father, "I'm not going to go out tonight. I'll go get ice cream with you guys."

Fitz wraps his arm around Karen's shoulders and presses a soft kiss to the top of her head, "You don't know how happy that makes me, Karen. I'll even buy you an extra scoop," he says with a laugh as she steps out of his embrace and over to Gerry's car.

"I'm gonna ride with the boys," she says as she opens the passenger side door.

"Okay, we'll see you in a few," Fitz calls back as he opens the door for Olivia and then quickly walks around to the other side of the car, following Gerry out of the parking lot to their usual ice cream spot.

Olivia looks over and smiles at the smile on Fitz's face, taking his hand. "You look happy, handsome."

"Do I look handsome and happy?" he asks with a cheeky smile as they pull onto the highway.

"Well, I don't want to stroke that ego of yours any more than I already have, but I also would rather not lie."

"That's a yes," he says with a laugh as he passes Gerry's car, laughing at Karen's and Teddy's faces smushed up against the window.

Olivia looks over and playfully sticks her tongue out at them as they pass by. "I really do love those kids so much."

He looks over at her with a smile and lets his hand instinctually fall to its natural position on her thigh. "Can we tell them?"

She arches and eyebrow and leans in a few inches closer to him. "About the baby?"

He nods and she takes a moment to consider. "I just—I don't want to get anyone's hopes up or hurt anyone's feelings. What we've got going now is good, and I don't want to jinx any of it."

"What? Like telling them is going to make everything come crashing to a halt?"

She takes a breath, trying to find the right words. "It's just that, telling them makes it all real. And we've been waiting for this moment and this baby for almost a decade—and throughout these last ten years the universe has pretty much screwed us over every chance it got. And now we're old Fitz, something could go wrong. Nothing is ever perfect for us—and I really, really want this experience and this baby to be perfect. I don't want to tempt fate."

He picks up her hand and lays a soft kiss on the back it. "Liv, the doctor said everything looks fine. You and the baby are both normal and healthy, and everything's progressing as it should be. If you keep your stress level down and eat properly, there's no reason for everything not to work out perfectly. We're getting our baby, Livvie. He or she is coming in six months—and telling or not telling the kids tonight is not going to change that. We are finally getting our baby, Liv."

She finally looks over at him after a few seconds of silence and slowly nods her head. "Okay."

He looks over at her as they exit the highway and approach a red light. "Okay?"

She gives him a weak smile and nods again, "Okay we can tell them."

He brings the hand up from her thigh and moves it over to her flat abdomen as he leans in to kiss her—whispering against her lips as she breaks their kiss in favor of air, "We're having a baby."

She smiles and kisses his cheek as he moves to continue driving. "We're finally having our baby."

"So," Fitz starts as they exit the car and walk hand in hand up to the little hole in the wall ice cream parlor that they had stumbled upon when they first moved to Vermont, "We're telling them?"

She nods slightly with a small smile, "We're telling them." And she smiles as Fitz opens the door and Teddy excitedly waves them over, scooting over in the booth to make room for them.

"We just ordered but I wasn't sure what you guys wanted," Gerry casually says as he puts his phone on the table and hands them each a small menu.

A waitress quickly comes over and takes their orders, timidly asking for a quick autograph which Fitz happily signs for the older woman with a bright smile. Their ice cream is delivered a few minutes later and much to Fitz and Olivia's surprise each child's order is twice its normal size. They quickly dig in—Fitz periodically reaching over to steal a few spoonfuls of Teddy's ice cream, the whole table laughing at his attempt at hostile protests.

The conversation dies out after a few minutes and Fitz looks over at Olivia, feeling that this is the perfect opportunity to share their news with the kids. Olivia laces their fingers together and rests their hands on her leg, taking a deep breath before she begins.

"So guys, your father and I kind of have something to share with you guys?" She says softly, and Gerry, Karen, and Teddy all look up from their bowls.

"Am I getting a lizard?" Teddy asks with pleading eyes and an excited smile.

Fitz laughs, "I thought you were asking Santa for a hamster?"

"Well," he starts—moving his index finger up to the corner of his mouth. He pauses for a few moments before continuing, "Hamsters are cool and all but I really want a lizard. Do you think Santa can bring lizards?"

"Oh no no, lizards are gross. I am so not living in a house with a lizard," Karen interrupts before taking another bite of her ice cream.

"Hey Ted, if Santa doesn't bring you a lizard this year, I'll get you one. You'll just have to promise to let it go visit Auntie Karen every once in awhile," Gerry says—laughing at the glare and soft punch he receives from Karen.

"Cool," Teddy says with a smile as he looks back down at the bowl in front of him.

"As Liv was saying," Fitz says once he's cleared his throat, "we have something pretty exciting to share with you all."

The three kids look back up at Olivia and Fitz expectantly, and Olivia gives them a nervous smile before she lets out, "We're having a baby."

"Really?" Gerry asks with a wide smile and Fitz nods—returning the grin.

Teddy looks up at Olivia, "I get to be a big brother?" And when she nods in affirmation he springs up and wraps his arms around her neck, almost restricting her breathing with the firmness of his hug. "This is the best day ever!" He says once he's settled back in his seat, finishing his ice cream while Fitz and Olivia are distracted.

Karen takes a few moments to react, but eventually a small smile spreads across her face. "It better be a girl. I'm going to need someone to tag team with against the lizard brothers over there."

Olivia smiles and leans into Fitz's side, "Well no promises there, but in the mean time I'll be an integral member of 'team no lizard.'"

"Y'all are still outnumbered three to two," Gerry says with a taunting smile as they finish up and go to pay the bill.

"Yeah well, I get an extra vote now and I hereby grant it to Karen," Olivia says as she wraps an arm around Karen's shoulders as they walk out of the ice cream parlor.

"Hey that's not fair," Teddy starts in protest as they near the cars.

Gerry looks down at his younger brother, "Ted, I think you're old enough to learn this now—life isn't fair, especially with girls. And if you want to survive and thrive in this life, you'll just let them be right and win."

He pouts as he climbs into the back of Gerry's car. "But I want a lizard."

"I'll get you a stuffed one and you can put that imagination of yours to good use," Olivia says as she closes the door for Teddy, adding a quick, "Buckle up," as the door closes.

She and Fitz get in the car and once again follow Gerry back to their house, both all smiles and feeling happier than they've felt in a long time.

"That went well," Fitz says as they pull into their driveway and walk into the house together.

She smiles and moves up on her tip toes to lay a soft kiss on his lips. "It did."

"I love you," he says as he takes her hand and leads her up the stairs after saying goodnight to Gerry and Karen who decided to stay up and watch a movie on the couch.

"I love you more," she says as he picks her up and throws her over his shoulder when they reach the top of the stairs—giggling as he hurriedly walks her down the hall and into their large master bedroom.

He lays her on the bed and crawls on top of her, kissing her soundly for a few moments before snaking a hand down and slowly lifting her shirt. He moves down her body and presses a sweet kiss to her flat abdomen.

"Hey baby, it's _daddy_. I love you."

* * *

**If y'all have any ideas or requests for a one shot, send them my way and I'll see what I can do.**


	3. Right

"And where do you think you're going?" Fitz asks with a smile and a hint of amusement in his voice as Olivia slowly meanders into his office—dressed head to toe in a new tracksuit. She walks right over to him and effectively places herself in between him and the stack of papers on his desk.

He coaxes her into his lap and wraps his arms around her, letting a hand fall onto her ever-growing baby bump. She smiles up at him and leans in to press a sweet kiss to his temple.

"Want to accompany me on my run?" She asks as she softly runs her fingers through his hair.

"I hate running," he says, raising his eyebrows slightly at her, "and so do you."

She nods a little and lets out a burst of air. "I know, but it's so boring around here without the kids. I'm bored. And I miss them."

"A month down in North Carolina with Mellie is much, much too long," he says, and she nods. "We could try our hands at picking out a name again," he adds with a smile, enjoying the half frown that spreads across her face.

"I said I was bored, not looking to start another fight."

"We're going to have to pick one eventually. She can't be called baby Grant for her entire life now, Liv."

Olivia playfully wags her pointer finger in his face, "First of all she would be baby Pope-Grant, and second, it worked in _Dirty Dancing_—and look how successful that turned out to be."

"Her actual name wasn't Baby, Livvie, it was Frances. Are you suggesting that we should name our daughter Frances, Olivia?" Fitz says dramatically, his lips turned upward into a slight smile.

"No I am not, Fitzgerald," she says in her own faux serious tone, lightly hitting his shoulder.

He moves in and whispers against her lips, "Good." She continues to run her fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp as he captures her lips within his own and gives her a slow, sensual kiss.

She pulls away with a wide smile on her face—her eyes slow to reopen—and brushes the lone curl from his forehead. "I'm going for my run now."

"I know another way for you to get some exercise and curb your boredom," he says as he leans in again and brings his lips to hers.

"Mmm as much as I would enjoy that, you have reports to read, and I need some fresh air."

"We could go out on the back deck and get in the hot tub—there's fresh air for you out there," he says, placing soft kisses to her neck.

"We could, but I don't know how Sally would feel about soggy reports. That would probably be a breach in national security or something."

He laughs and kisses her temple, tightening his arms around her as she tries to stand. He presses his face into the crook of her neck and whines, "No please don't go."

"You're worse than Teddy with the whining," she says with a disapproving laugh, finally able to remove herself from his hold.

He grabs her hand and tries to pull her back to himself but she doesn't budge. "Livvie, stay with me. These stupid things are slowly killing me," he says with a motion down to the mountainous stack of white papers on his desk.

"Then come for a run with me."

"That sounds even worse than this," he says with a exasperated sigh, laying his head down on one of the smaller stacks of papers that are sitting in front of him on the desk—softly hitting his head on them a few times.

She pulls her hand free from his grasp and walks over to the door laughing to herself. "Oh you better learn to suck it up, and quick. We're not going to have room for two babies in this house."

He picks his head up and looks over at her from across the room, "Technically we have room for up to five babies—six if we can manage to finally kick Gerry out for good."

"No one is getting kicked out. And the only way you're getting four more babies is if this little girl magically morphs herself into quintuplets," Olivia says as she brings a hand down and places it over her abdomen.

"I do believe in magic, my dear Livvie," Fitz calls out to her as she turns to leave the room, giving him a patronizing wave as she exits and walks down the hall towards the staircase.

He hears the front door open and then shut again a few moments later, and he forces himself to go back to reading the mountain of security counsel reports Sally had asked him to take a look at earlier in the week. He quickly gets caught up in the multiple pages of classified information and doesn't really register the fact that Olivia had returned from her run until he hears glass shatter against the tile floor.

He calls out Olivia's name and asks if she's ok, and when she doesn't respond, he pushes his chair back from the desk and flies down the hall, descending the steps quicker than he had ever before. He finds her in the kitchen frozen in place, shards of glass and a puddle of water surrounding her. The look of fear on her face takes his breath away and he quickly moves to her, not really taking into account the pieces of glass that lie all around the kitchen floor.

"Olivia, what's the matter?" He asks somewhat in panic as he finally reaches her and guides her over to sit down on a nearby stool at the island.

"Something's wrong. I should—I shouldn't have gone. I shouldn't have pushed it. I was stupid and ran too far and pushed too hard and now something's wrong," she says all in one breath with tears starting to build up in her eyes.

"What do you mean? What's wrong?" he asks—still in a state of panic.

"I don't know! I felt something, and it's not right. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," she breathes out as the tears begin to stream down her face.

"Felt what? Like a gut feeling? Or are you in pain? What hurts?" he asks as he brushes the sweaty strands of hair from her forehead and wipes the few tears from her cheek.

"Nothing hurts—it's, it's," and she stutters for a few seconds, trying to catch her breath, but then she finally reaches out and grabs his hand and brings it to the center of her swollen stomach, "it's that. Something's wrong."

A wide smile spreads across his face after a few moments when he realizes what's actually happening, and he brings his free hand to cup her cheek—leaning in to kiss her forehead. "Livvie," he says slowly, "nothing's wrong. She's kicking; our little girl is kicking."

She looks up at him in shock, the fear in her eyes beginning to dissolve as a grin spreads across her face. "She's kicking?"

He nods and brings the hand that's cupping her cheek down to her stomach, effectively covering the entire baby bump. He kisses her forehead again before leaning his against hers, "Baby girl is kicking."

"Something's not wrong," she smiles and he shakes his head.

"Nothing's wrong. Everything's perfect. She's going to be perfect."

Olivia smiles and brings both of her hands to cup his cheeks, "She already is."

And they stay like that for a few more minutes, both enjoying the short fluttery kicks and the newfound interaction with their unborn daughter. But eventually the kicking stops just as abruptly as it had started and Fitz goes off in search of a broom, leaving Olivia sitting safely on the stool.

He quickly gets the glass cleaned up, periodically shooting Olivia mischievous glances and suggestive smiles while he sweeps. She returns his looks with a small grin and gently pulls her bottom lip in between her teeth, crossing her legs and placing her hand wide over her abdomen. He finally gets all of the glass thrown away and then moves over to stand behind Olivia, leaning his himself down to place a few feather light kisses to her neck as he wraps his arms around her middle.

She reaches an arm behind her and runs her fingers through his hair, letting out a soft moan as he continues his ministrations. "Mmm, Fitz, stop. I'm sweaty and gross," she finally breathes out after a few moments.

"You're beautiful," he whispers against her neck, "Always. You're always beautiful."

He finally spins her around on the stool and reattaches his lips to hers, kissing her soundly for a few minutes. She pulls away breathless—her arms wrapped around his neck—as her phone begins to ring. Fitz looks over to the phone on the counter and groans, walking over to retrieve it for her.

She looks at the name on the screen and mouths "Karen" to him with a slight shrug of her shoulders as she slides her finger across the illuminated screen and brings it u to her ear. "Hello?"

"Well? What's the verdict?" Karen asks eagerly, Gerry's and Teddy's excited chatter able to be heard in the background.

Olivia smiles up at Fitz as she answers the question the whole family had been anticipating for nearly three months, "Well, I hope you guys like pink and cute little bows because she's a girl."

"I knew it!" Teddy says as Karen excitedly yells into the phone, and Olivia places it on speaker, laying it onto the counter as she walks into Fitz's open arms, resting her head against his chest—a smile on both of their faces.

"Congratulations mom and dad, I can't wait to meet her," Gerry says once the celebration on their end of the phone settles down.

"We can't either, bud," Olivia says as Fitz lays a sweet kiss to the top of Olivia's head.

"Hey dad, on a scale of one to ten how excited we you when you found out?"

"That scale doesn't go up high enough, baby girl," Fitz says, wrapping his arm a little tighter around Olivia.

"He made us stop to pick up a few things for her on the way home if that serves as any indication for you," Olivia says with a laugh as she moves out of his embrace and over to a cabinet to get a glass—filling it with ice water from the refrigerator.

"Typical," Gerry says with a laugh and both Teddy and Karen agree.

"I can't wait until we all come home. I miss you both so much," Karen says as she takes the phone off of speaker and walks out of the room where Teddy and Gerry were playing some new videogame.

"We miss you too, Kare. How was dinner last night?" Olivia asks, and Fitz gives her a curious look.

"It was perfect. I think I really like him mom."

"That's great, Karen. I'm happy to hear you're enjoying yourself." Olivia looks over at the frown on Fitz's face and tries to stifle a laugh, reaching out to cup his cheek—mouthing "it's fine" to him when his frown doesn't disappear.

"He's taking me to a bonfire tonight with some of his friends from the lacrosse team," Karen says, a smile clearly able to be heard in her voice.

Fitz's face falls, "Wha—what? Is this still that Jason kid?"

Karen laughs into the phone, "Yes daddy. I promise you'll meet him sometime soon. I think you'll really like him."

"Oh I'm not so sure about that one Karen. You should see his face right now," Olivia says with a smile, brushing his hair back affectionately.

"He's pretty great, daddy. Even Gerry seems to like him," Karen retorts with a proud smile.

"I'm sure he's just perfect, Kay. I bet he even has nice hair and a pretty boy smile and dreamy eyes," Fitz says with sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Olivia lightly punches his shoulder and Karen chuckles. "You're one to talk. I've seen pictures of you in college, Dad."

"I am not at liberty to discuss any of that, my dear. And on that note, I will talk to you later."

"Alright daddy, I love you. You better take good care of mom and my baby sister until I get back."

"No doubt, Kare. I love you," he says before kissing Olivia's temple and walking out of the kitchen.

Olivia takes the phone off of speaker and walks out to the living room, sitting on the couch as she continues to listen to Karen discuss her newfound relationship with both Jason and Mellie. She hangs up the phone and curls herself up in a blanket on the couch, slowly drifting off to sleep as she reads a baby book Fitz had insisted they pick up after their first doctor's appointment.

Fitz walks down the steps a while later, smiling as he notices Olivia asleep on the couch—an unconscious hand resting across her baby bump. He walks over and covers her fully with the blanket, pressing a kiss to her forehead before going into the kitchen to make dinner.

She wakes up to the smell of food wafting throughout the house from the kitchen, and she smiles to herself when she hears Fitz singing as dishes clank away. She gets slowly gets up and folds the blanket, placing it on the back of the couch before quietly making her way to the kitchen.

"Now isn't that a sight," she says with a smile, leaning up against the edge of the counter as she watches him bent over—head in the oven.

He closes to over and turns around to look at her with a cheesy grin on his face, "And it's all for you, baby."

"I'm a very lucky woman," she admits and walks over closer to him, allowing him to place her on top of the counter and kiss her slowly. She wraps her legs around him, smiling against his lips as she pulls away. She brings his hand up to cover her abdomen, and a smile spreads across his face when he realizes why.

"Wow, she's an active little one," he says with pride.

"And she loves her daddy," Olivia says with a smile as she presses her hand on top of Fitz's, leaning in to kiss him again.


	4. Grace

She walks down the crowded hallway buzzing with excited voices and adorned with colorful turkey hands and funny-faced pilgrim decorations and moves past child after child, giving them each a kind smile as she politely nods to the parents walking them out. She makes it to the door of the first grade classroom and peeks through the small window, smiling as she sees Teddy sitting around a table with a few other kids coloring a large sign. She places a hand over her very swollen abdomen, her own futile attempt to settle the strong kicks the baby had been delivering all morning, and walks inside the classroom, pausing to speak with Teddy's teacher before she makes her presence known to him.

"Hello Mrs. Grant," she greets with a smile, "it's great to see you. Teddy is ready to go, I'll just go make sure he's all packed up. "

Olivia smiles at the older woman, "Oh that's fine, he can keep coloring for a few more minutes. We really have nowhere to be today."

"Resting up before the big turkey feast tomorrow?" Ms. Carter asks with a raised eyebrow as she starts straightening the piles of paper on her desk.

"Resting is all Fitz allows me to do these days," Olivia says with a laugh, "he left yesterday to go pick up Karen from Cornell and gave one of the agents very specific instructions about what I'm actually allowed to do. I surprised 'pick up Teddy from school' was even on the list."

"Sounds just like my husband. Just remember it's all coming from a place of love, and make sure to milk the extra work he's doing once your little one arrives," she say, placing a kind hand on Olivia's shoulder with a wink before turning to greet the father who had just walked through the door.

Olivia considers the older woman's words as she walks over to Teddy, laying her own hand on his shoulder. He spins around and smiles when he sees her, "Momma!" And he quickly stands up on his chair to give her a hug.

"Whatcha drawing little man?" Olivia asks after she presses a kiss to the top of his head.

"A turkey with sunglasses cause he's cool," Teddy says with a proud smile as he holds the paper up for her to get a better look.

"Wow Ted, that's pretty great. I think I know the perfect place on the refrigerator for it," she says as she helps him slip on his backpack, and they walk out of the school together, Teddy telling her all about the birthday celebration his class threw for him.

"Are Karen and Daddy home yet?" Teddy asks as Olivia pulls into their empty driveway and turns off the car.

"Not yet, buddy. But they should be home by dinner time tonight. And Gerry should be home a little bit later," she responds as she slowly starts to maneuver her way out of the car, following Teddy up to the front door with his drawing in her hand.

"I want them to be here already," he says with a small pout as he kicks off his shoes and drops his backpack by the front door.

"I know you do, Ted. Me too. But they'll all be here right in time for your birthday tomorrow," she says as she shrugs off her coat and she reaches out and takes his, hanging them up together. "Why don't you go put your backpack up in your room and change out of your uniform and I'll make us a quick snack."

"Alright," he says as he picks up his backpack and starts walking off towards the stairs, but he turns as he finally reaches them, "Can I have popcorn?"

"I think popcorn is a definite possibility," Olivia says with a nod of the head and a smile before walking off towards the direction of the kitchen to make their snack.

Teddy comes down the stairs a few minutes later dressed in his favorite t shirt and jeans and climbs up onto one of the stools at the kitchen island, reaching into the bowl residing there and grabbing a large handful of warm popcorn.

"Lemonade or water?" Olivia asks as she turns and holds up both choices from inside the refrigerator.

Teddy quickly points to the lemonade as he shovels another handful of popcorn in his mouth. Olivia closes the refrigerator door and his face partially falls when he doesn't see his new drawing on it, but he quickly recovers before she has a chance to notice.

"Can we watch _Cars_ now?" Teddy asks as Olivia places the cup of lemonade in front of him and takes a handful of popcorn for herself.

"I'm going to go up and finish putting everything in the nursery away, but you can watch it," Olivia says as she turns around and grabs a bottle of water for herself from the refrigerator, not noticing how Teddy's face falls again. He mumbles an ok as he slides off of the stool and takes his drink and the bowl of popcorn into the living room.

Olivia walks into the living room a few minutes later on her way to the stairs and finds him watching the movie. She affectionately runs her fingers through his soft curls as she passes the couch and walks up towards the nursery.

She finishes folding all of the new clothes she and Fitz had just received from family and friends and gets them all put away in the small dresser drawers. Then she moves into Karen's and Gerry's rooms and makes their beds and straightens up before going into her own room to put away all of the clothes she and Teddy had folded the night before.

She's standing in their large walk in closet hanging up the last of Fitz's dress shirts when she stumbles upon a few presents for Teddy that they had hid a few months ago. She smiles to herself when she remembers their trip to the pet store and how his eyes lit up when he saw some colorful fish darting around their tanks. She quickly gets the fish bowl and its accessories wrapped and goes back downstairs just as Teddy's movie is ending and she sits on the couch next to him, slightly upset when he doesn't immediately acknowledge her presence. He doesn't make eye contact with her and nonchalantly moves away from her on the couch, but the movement doesn't go unnoticed by Olivia.

"Teddy, is there something bothering you?" She asks cautiously after a few seconds.

"No," he mumbles as he searches the blanket on the couch for the remote.

"Teddy," she tries again, "would you tell me if something was?"

He stops his searching and sits still for a few seconds, contemplating an answer, but he continues to look down at his lap.

"Teddy," she says gently, "talk to me bud."

He finally looks up at her, a sad expression written across his face. "Are you still gonna be my momma after the baby comes?"

Her face falls slightly and she gives him a sympathetic look, opening her arms for him to crawl into. "Of course I will be, Teddy. Nothing and no one could ever change that."

He hesitantly crawls over to her and she wraps her arms tightly around his small body, trying to give him any semblance of comfort and reassurance she can.

He slowly picks up his head from her shoulder, "Are you going to love her more than me?"

She softly runs a hand through his curls and looks him directly in the eye, "No, bud. Teddy I want you to listen to me, there is not a single person in this world who will be able to change my love for you, or Karen, or Gerry—not this baby or any other future babies or anyone, okay?"

Teddy looks down quickly and then back up at her, taking a moment to consider her words before nodding his head slowly, leaning in again to lay his head on her chest. She presses a kiss to the top of his head and they sit like that on the couch for a few minutes, Teddy snuggled tightly in between her and the back of the couch.

"Have you been feeling like this for a while?" Olivia asks gently as she looks down at him.

He shrugs his shoulders and looks away from her. "I heard you and daddy talking one night about how she's your special miracle baby and how happy you are to get to be a momma, but you're already my momma and I want you to be my momma forever."

Olivia takes a deep breath and looks back down at Teddy, meeting his tear-filled eyes. "Oh Teddy, I will always be your momma—nothing's ever going to change that buddy, I promise. I'm sorry you overheard daddy and me, but we've been waiting for you little sister for a very long time and now that she's finally real and almost here, we couldn't be more excited. But having her will by no means affect how we feel about you, having her won't replace you or make us love you any less. You'll always be my little Teddy bear and snuggle bug, and I will always love you." She gently shifts him in her arms and presses a soft kiss to his temple, gently running her fingers through his hair.

He eventually looks up at her and gives her a small smile, the tears in his eyes gone. "I love you, momma," and he cautiously brings one of his small hands down to her stomach and places it in the center, "And I love her too."

Olivia smiles down at him but quickly arches her eyebrows at the peculiar look that spreads across Teddy's face, "What's up, bud?"

"Does that feel funny to you?" He asks, referring to the baby's kicking.

She nods her head with a smile and moves his hand a little higher, right over to where she can feel the strongest kicks, "It used to, but now I'm pretty used to it."

"That's so cool," he says with wonder in his voice, watching her stomach as he sees a small outline of the baby's foot present itself every once in a while. He eventually tears his gaze from Olivia's abdomen and looks back up at her, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course you can," she says with a wide smile as she brings her own hand over her very swollen abdomen.

"Is it real life that she got in your tummy with a seed?"

She laughs and nods, "Kind of. But didn't you and daddy already have this talk?"

"Yeah but he just talked about stupid trees like the ones we planted at that big library. And when I asked Gerry he laughed and told me not to worry about it."

"Men," Olivia says as she nods her head in mock disapproval. "Can you tell me what daddy's tree story sounded like?"

Teddy takes a deep breath, "he said that when two grown up trees wanna make a baby tree, a seed comes from one of them and is put into the dirt and is watered and fed and gets sunlight and then after a little bit of time it starts to grow and then after more time we can see it and then watch it grow some more, and then it becomes a grown up tree and makes its own baby trees and that's why we have forests."

Olivia laughs good naturedly, "And from that I can see why you still have questions. Ok instead of grown up trees, think of a mommy and a daddy. When a mommy and a daddy love each other so much that they decide they want to have a baby, the daddy gives the mommy something like a little tree seed, and the mommy gets to keep the little seed safe inside her tummy until it's big enough to be born."

"Oh," Teddy says with a confused look on his face. "How did the seed get in your tummy?"

"Magic," Olivia says dramatically with wide eyes.

"Really?"

She laughs, "No, but until you're older I want you to pretend that it's magic. Can you do that for me?"

Teddy shrugs his shoulders, "I guess so." He looks down for a few moments and then back up to her. "Can she come on my birthday? That would be so cool!"

Olivia smiles and strokes his cheek. "No one knows when she's going to come except for her. But are you sure that you'd be okay sharing a birthday with your sister?"

Teddy enthusiastically nods, "Yeah! Double cakes and presents, duh. It would be awesome."

Olivia laughs and shifts her hand across her swollen abdomen. "Okay well, maybe you should try and convince her that it's time to come out."

"No yet, daddy needs to come home first," Teddy says with a serious expression on his face.

"Good point," Olivia smiles with a conceding nod, "So in the meantime, what would you like to do?"

"Watch _Cars 2_," Teddy says without a moment's hesitation.

"Well what are you waiting for? Go put it in." Olivia laughs when Teddy bounces off of the couch and excitedly runs over to the TV to start his second favorite movie. He comes back over and snuggles himself into her side, resting his head on the inside of her chest as her arm snakes around him holding him tight.

They watch the movie together, Olivia actually staying awake throughout the whole thing thanks to Teddy's periodic nudges. She then goes to cook dinner as Teddy sits down on one of the stools at the kitchen island, coloring another turkey drawing that he declared will be for Karen. Olivia periodically looks up from where she's working and looks over at the little boy coloring in front of her, an unconscious smile spreading across her face. She never dreamed that the little boy created merely for political gain could capture her heart and the heart of everyone around him so easily—she never dreamed of how perfectly he could jell their family together. And she hopes that he never finds out about the reason for his existence because although he was not created from a place of love, he is loved more than he could ever imagine.

She quickly gets so caught up in her thoughts and distracted by the baby's constant kicking that she doesn't hear someone slip in through the front door or the quite footsteps into the kitchen, and she doesn't notice the excitement in Teddy's eyes until she feels hands snake over her eyes from behind.

She jumps a little—obviously caught in complete surprise—but she quickly recognizes the petite hands and smiles as she turns around. "Karen." And she engulfs the teenage girl in her arms and presses a kiss to her temple.

"I missed you so much mom," Karen says as she pulls her head up from Olivia's shoulder and smiles at her.

"I missed you too, sweetie," Olivia replies as she wraps her arms around Karen again, hugging her as close as her very swollen stomach will allow.

"Hey what about me?" Teddy asks with a lopsided smile from his seat on the stool, feeling the lack of attention being directed toward him.

"Well I guess I missed you too, you little creep," Karen says as she walks over to him, rounding the island and opening her arms for him—bracing herself for impact.

Teddy jumps into her arms and laughs as she playfully spins him around in circles, his legs swinging outward from the centrifugal force. She puts him down and he walks back over to the island, picking up the picture he had been drawing for her. "I made you a turkey. She has on a fancy dress and shoes. And look, I even drawed her nails pink," Teddy says with a wide smile as he points to his drawing.

"Hey Kare, where's your dad?" Olivia asks as she looks out of the kitchen and over to the front door and doesn't see Fitz.

"I'm right here, Livvie," Fitz says with a small laugh as he struggles to drag Karen's suitcase through the garage door. "Geeze Karen, what do you have in this thing? Rocks?"

"Oh c'mon dad it's not that heavy. Don't tell me I go off to college and you fall out of shape."

"I'm not out of shape. If you haven't noticed already, my workout partner is temporarily out of commission so I've been slacking a little bit," Fitz says with a smile and a quick, knowing glance over at Olivia.

"Ew gross, that is a visual I did not need," Karen says as she rounds the counter and tires to take the suitcase from Fitz.

"That is not what I meant," Fitz says, laughing at Olivia's semi-horrified face. "And leave the bag by the stairs—Gerry can get it when he gets home."

"Alright cool," Karen says as she exits the kitchen with her suitcase, Teddy getting up to follow her.

"Hey Teddy wait up! Don't I get a proper hello?" Fitz calls out after Teddy. The little boy turns around and gives his father a sheepish smile.

"Hi dad, bye dad!" He says as he runs out of the kitchen after Karen.

"I'll give you a proper hello," Olivia says as Fitz turns back to look at her.

Fitz walks over to her and draws her into a tight hug, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as he holds her close. She pulls away slightly and he brings his face down to hers, capturing her lips in a deep, slow kiss.

"Hi," she whispers against his lips after a few moments.

"Hi," he returns with a smile, pulling her back into another drawn out hug.

"I miss—we missed you," she quickly corrects, and he brings both of his hands to her baby bump, spreading them out to encompass a vast majority of it.

"And how was my girl last night? Well behaved for mommy?" he asks as he leans down and presses a soft kiss to the top of her stomach.

"More like tap dancing along my bladder all night," Olivia says with a small laugh as she runs a hand through the curls at the back of Fitz's neck.

"Just a few more days and you'll have your body back and we'll have our little girl," Fitz says with a smile as he brings his head back up and places a kiss to Olivia's forehead.

"I can't wait," she says as she lays her head on his chest, bring a hand up to rest on her swollen abdomen.

"How are you feeling? Any cramping or contractions?" he asks as he wraps an arm around her waist, leading her over to a seat at the kitchen table.

"Just tired, and a little achy," she says as he sits and she leans back against him—closing her eyes and enjoying the soothing circles he's rubbing into her back.

"Why don't you let me finish up dinner and then we'll get the kids to do the dishes and we'll take a warm, relaxing bath together."

"Mmm, that sounds nice," she says—her eyes still closed and head resting against his shoulder, "but I don't think I'd be able to get back up out of the bathtub, Fitz."

"I'll help you, baby. Don't worry about it," he says, pressing another kiss to her temple as he finishes his massage. "Now, where are we with dinner?"

"It's already in the oven, probably has about fifteen minutes left on it. There's stuff for a salad in the fridge, you just have to wash the lettuce and throw everything into a bowl."

"I'm on it," he says as he kisses her again before getting up to finish preparing dinner and set the table. Olivia turns in her chair and watches him chop vegetables and check the dish in the oven with a smile on her face—loving the domesticated side of her husband that not many are privy to.

"I forgot how much I love home cooked meals. Thanks mom," Karen says as she takes the stack of dirty plates from the table over to the sink.

Olivia gives her a small smile as she hands her a few more dishes from her seat, "You're welcome, sweetie. I'm so happy you're home."

"As am I," Fitz chimes in from his seat at the table, raising is wine glass in the air to her.

"Me too, me too," Teddy says with a wide smile from the kitchen, taking a break from scraping the leftovers on the plates into the garbage. "Now we just need Gerry!"

"He should be here soon," Olivia says as she looks over to Teddy. "Karen can you bring me a clean plate so I can make him a plate for when he gets home?"

"Sure," Karen replies as she grabs a plate from the cabinet and brings it over to Olivia.

"Hey Teddy, why don't we go get you showered and ready for bed while we wait for Gerry," Fitz says to the little boy as he brings the final dishes from the table into the kitchen.

"But I wanna wait for Gerry to get home," Teddy protests, a pout starting to form on his face.

"You can wait for him, but in the meantime let's get you showered. C'mon," Fitz says as he nods towards the steps, waiting for Teddy to start walking.

"Fine," he relents, putting the plate on the counter and following Fitz up the stairs.

Olivia gets up and puts the plate she had just prepared for Gerry in the refrigerator, helping Karen finish the rest of the dishes and wipe down the table.

"So tell me about Jason," Olivia requests as they settle in on the couch together waiting for the boys to finish and come down.

Karen's cheeks turn a light shade of red and a smile breaks out across her face. "He told me that he loved me last weekend when he came to visit."

Olivia smiles. "That's great, Kare. Did you say it back?"

Karen nods with a wide smile played out on her face. "I love him so much. Like I've never liked a guy like this, and it kind of scares me a little bit," she admits as she twirls a loose strand of hair around her finger.

"Love is terrifying, sweetie. But trust me when I tell you, it's all worth it in the end," Olivia says as she brings an unconscious hand over her baby bump.

"Is that why you waited and stayed with dad through everything?"

Olivia nods. "I tried to walk away, I really did. I tried to leave and move on, but no one else can make me feel the way your father does. And it took me awhile to realize that, but once I did there was no way I could go."

"And I'm really glad that you didn't go," Karen says softly, moving closer to Olivia on the couch.

"Me too, baby girl. More than you will ever know," Olivia says as she wraps an arm around Karen's shoulders and draws her in close, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as Karen lays it on her shoulder.

"Can I tell you something?" Karen asks timidly after a few moments of silence.

"Always."

Karen lifts her head up and looks at Olivia, "Jason and I had sex last weekend."

Olivia's face softens, not sure if Karen is happy or upset with her choice. "Are you okay?"

Karen nods with a faint smile, "Yeah. I'm really happy that I waited for someone like him."

"You're being safe right?" Olivia asks with a serious look on her face. "Sex is a beautiful thing, but it is also a very big step with some pretty hefty consequences. I can take you to the doctor if you need me to."

"It's ok. Mom took me this summer when we were with her. She told me that a pregnant teenage daughter wouldn't be good for her campaign image so I needed to be prepared."

"Okay well," Olivia starts s she runs her fingers through the ends of Karen's ponytail, "if you need to talk about anything or if you have any questions, I'm always here for you. And I won't share any of it with your father if you don't want me to."

"Thanks mom, I love you."

"I love you too, sweetie. And if I haven't said it lately, I am so proud of the woman you have grown up to be. It's been an honor being privileged to watch you grow up, and I can only hope this little girl will someday be half the woman that you are."

Karen wipes a tear from her eye before it is able to escape and tightly wraps her arms around Olivia. "I'm so thankful for you mom. You turned our nightmare home into the family that Gerry and I used to dream of, and I hope that one day I can be just like you."

They sit together in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the familiar company and indescribable love, but suddenly Karen gets up off of the couch and starts to run over towards the stairs.

She comes back a few minutes later with a paper in her hands and settles back onto the couch, handing it to Olivia. "I almost forgot, we had to write about an inspirational figure in my composition class and I wrote about you."

Olivia looks from Karen down to the paper and runs her fingers over the title, _Our Saving Grace_. She reads through the essay, trying desperately to keep her tears from staining the pristine white pages, pausing periodically to kiss Karen's temple.

"I love it," she breathes out as best she can through the tears once she finishes, "And I love you. Thank you so much."

"I was going to give it to you tomorrow after dinner when we go around and say what we're most thankful for, but I just couldn't wait. I also printed out a copy for you to save to show to the baby someday when she's older—someday when she's so mad at you and doesn't understand how lucky she is to have someone like you, to have you—as a mom and friend."

"Thank you," Olivia says, reaching out to draw Karen back to herself to give her a hug and press another kiss to her temple.

Karen leans in and gently rests her head on top of Olivia's stomach, whispering to the baby, "Our mommy is amazing; you're so lucky baby girl."

"I'm the lucky one," Olivia says as she places one hand on Karen's head and one on her stomach, just as the front door opens.

Karen lifts her head and the both turn around, both smiling as they see Gerry trek through the door with his bags.

"Hey guys," Gerry says with a smile as she makes his way over to the couch, giving Karen a hug before offering Olivia a hand to help her up, hugging her too.

Teddy comes flying down the steps with wet curls dressed in his spider man pajamas, launching himself into Gerry's arms with a loud shriek.

"Happy almost birthday, stinker," Gerry says with a laugh as he puts Teddy back down and moves over to give Fitz a hug.

"How was the drive?" Fitz asks as the five of them make their way into the kitchen, Olivia pulling out Gerry's plate and heating it up.

"It was fine, the only real traffic I hit was coming through Baltimore. And I had good music to listen to, so it was all good," Gerry says as he takes a seat with Teddy and Karen at the island.

"Good to hear," Olivia says as she hands Gerry his dinner, offering to fix him a drink.

Gerry turns to Teddy, "I'm surprised you're still awake, little man. Do bedtimes get dismissed when you turn seven?"

"He isn't seven yet," Fitz points out, "not for another two hours. And this is a special occasion 'big brother is finally home' bedtime dismissal."

"Well nevertheless, I'm glad you're here," Gerry says as he wraps an arm playfully around Teddy's neck and draws him in close.

"I'm going to go up and take a shower," Karen says as she stands up from the stool after a few minutes of family chitchat.

"Okay," Olivia replies with a smile, quickly adding, "take your brother upstairs with you please."

Teddy pouts but quickly stops when Fitz shoots him a look, and the little boy regretfully trudges off towards the stairs with Karen. Olivia rounds the island and presses a kiss to the top of Gerry's head, "I'm going to go tuck Teddy in. I'm glad you're home, Ger."

"Thanks ma," Gerry replies with a smile, and both he and Fitz watch as she walks out of the kitchen in pursuit of the stairs.

Olivia gets Teddy tucked into bed and reads to him until he falls asleep, a task that didn't take very long considering how late it was for him. She goes off into the master bathroom and gets herself ready for bed, deciding to skip Fitz's relaxing bath idea and go straight to laying in their comfortable bed.

He comes up a few minutes later and quickly brushes his teeth and changes, plopping down next to Olivia on the bed.

"I'm glad you're home now," she says, turning to look at him.

"I'm glad we're all home. I was terrified that you'd go into labor without me."

"I would never dare go into labor without you. Who would I verbally abuse if you weren't present? Tom?"

"Well now I'm here and ready to be abused, especially if it means we get to finally meet our little angel," he says with a smile as he lifts her shirt and places a kiss to the center of her swollen abdomen.

"I can't wait to see her," Olivia murmurs, soothingly running her hand up and down Fitz's arm.

"Me either. I've been waiting for this day since the moment I laid eyes on you in my campaign headquarters. You were so beautiful you took my breath away—and to this day you still do. And your grace, it's one of my very most favorite qualities that you possess. You, my beautiful Livvie, you are grace personified."

* * *

_Three days later, early Saturday morning, Good Samaritan Hospital_

Fitz looks over at his wife laying in the small hospital bed with their newborn daughter snuggled comfortably onto her chest, her sandy brown curls peeking out from under the knitted pink hat that she had just received. His heart swells with love and adoration as he watches Olivia hold their child, their miracle baby, and he can't help but smile. Their past—all of the hurt, and the pain, and the heartbreak—every last second of it was worth it in this moment, and he wouldn't take back any of it, not a single word.

"She needs a name," Olivia says with a smile as she looks up at Fitz, cradling a sleeping infant on her chest.

He moves over to the bed and sits on the edge, kissing Olivia as he gently strokes their daughter's cheek with a finger. "Grace."

"Grace?" Olivia says with an arched eyebrow as she looks up at him, her head resting on his shoulder.

He nods, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"Grace," she repeats to herself after a moment. "Grace Ayla Grant. I love it."

"Grace Ayla Pope-Grant," he corrects, kissing her again.

She smiles up at him and presses her lips to his, smiling through their sweet kiss. She looks back down at their daughter and shifts her on her chest so they can see her face—a face that perfectly blends Olivia and Fitz together.

"Happy birthday Gracie, mommy loves you to the moon and back, always and forever."

* * *

**So they finally got their little girl. And lived happily ever after. I may do an epilogue for this or random one shots from this universe later, but I'm not sure yet. I hope y'all enjoyed this one, and I'm sorry it took me like two weeks to get this written, life is crazy right now. **


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